Report: AirPower has entered the production and is coming soon

Apple's long-awaited wireless charging mat AirPower can finally be on the horizon if the latest rumors are to be believed.

Hong Kong's website ChargerLAB cites a "credible source" in Apple's supply chain claiming Chinese manufacturer Luxshare Precision has started production of AirPower. In a conversation on Chinese messaging WeChat, the source adds that he has heard AirPower will be released soon.

Breaking: AirPower finally comes. We have just learned from a credible source in the supply chain that manufacturing Luxshare Precision has already begun to produce Apple AirPower wireless charging plate. Luxshare Precision is also the manufacturer of Apple AirPods and USB-C cables. pic.twitter.com/UqgWIAh3sx

MacRumors translated the Chinese messages into the WeChat screenshot using the Google Translate app for photos on iPhone and they are displayed to be consistent with what ChargerLAB claims in its tweet.

Luxshare is a member of the Wireless Power Consortium behind the Qi standard and also installs AirPods for Apple and Lightning for USB-C cables, according to ChargerLAB. Reports had suggested Luxshare would be a primary supplier of AirPower since already in February 2017.

Luxshare may not be the only supplier, as a report last year said Pegatron would also be involved in production.

A few weeks ago, developer Steve Troughton-Smith said he heard Apple might have overcome technical challenges with AirPower and could go ahead with a release. These technical challenges included overheating and interference, according to Sonny Dickson, a temporary source of Apple leakage.

Where is AirPower? 🤷♂️ Everything I've heard is "they've finally fixed it," so, if true, it can be sent as a product when Apple wants. Hopefully beyond the smart battery compartment for XS?

In October, in a survey obtained by MacRumors, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claimed that Apple could start AirPower early in the first quarter 2019, which indicates that the accessory can be released soon.

The delayed release of AirPower is likely why Apple has not yet released its optional AirPods wireless charging bag, which is still listed as "currently unavailable" on Apple's website. Like AirPower, Kuo said the wireless case could be released in early 2019 before a brand new pair in 2020.

AirPower is an oval-shaped mat that can quickly and wirelessly load multiple Apple devices, including the iPhone 8 and later, the Apple Watch Series 3 and later, and AirPods when placed in the above-mentioned wireless charging cases that are expected to launch alongside the carpet.

Apple previewed AirPower at the Steve Jobs Theater in September 2017, shortly after introducing the iPhone X and indicated it would be released at some point in 2018 in a press release. However, Apple failed to deliver that promise and has not commented on AirPower for many months.

Following its event in September 2018, Apple took away anything but any remarks from AirPower from its website. However, the carpet was still referenced in the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and iPhone XR user guides, in some recent Apple job ads, and in some recent Apple patent applications.

Apple's silence about AirPower has led some to believe that the product has been interrupted, but today's report offers hopeful hope.

Last month, based on documentation made by Made for iPhone program members, ChargerLAB reported exactly that third-party Apple-certified Lightning for USB-C cables would be available in early 2019. Among other things, Belkin and Griffin Blixt were introduced. USB-C cables at CES 2019 this week.

However, ChargerLAB mistakenly reported that the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and iPhone XR would be bundled with a faster 18W USB-C AC adapter from Apple. The site showed that the charger was correct, but it ended in the 2018 iPad Pro, so the rumor was not entirely out of base.